Monthly Update

YIKES!! It’s been almost 1 month since I last blogged something… That doesn’t mean that I haven’t tried!! I have several blog posts still in draft status that just never got around to getting published… but they will be soon! It’s been a busy, busy time this last month and now my family is gearing up for birthday season in March/April (we have EIGHT birthdays in our immediate family during this time!). We have lots to celebrate this year since my Mom is turning 60, my sis-in-law is turning 35, and I’ll be turning 30!! Big milestones this year!!

SO! Let me catch you up!! In the last month we had our Keswick Hall getaway, Michael was baptized (blogging about this next week!!), I attended several photography webinars, photographed several families and babies, enjoyed a relaxing trip to Denton Abbey, and hosted a Mom Prom! And of course, lots of baby snuggles and family time in between all of that! Virginia has had some crazy weather with it being 70° one day and then snow flurries the next… Soaking up all of this sunshine is getting me SO excited for spring!!

The image above is one of many sunset images snapped with my iPhone last weekend at the rivah! This trip was just the right amount of relaxation, fun, and breath of fresh air that my soul desperately needed. There is something about Denton Abbey that just makes you take a deep breath and be so grateful for life’s blessings. Last Friday, I was scrambling to straighten up the house, run errands, and get us packed up before hitting the road to scoot out of the hustle and bustle of Short Pump for a much needed getaway. We hadn’t been to the rivah since New Year’s Eve so we were much overdue for a visit.

Michael was unusually fussy all day last Friday… I swear he is teething already… so that made it challenging to run errands. I knew that I had maybe a 1 hour window before his nap so I took a chance and went for it. We roamed the aisles of Costco (you can read about my obsession with this place, here) and gathered all of the necessary items for our trip… wine… Cheez Its… and turkey roll up sandwiches… while trying to stick to my list I of course got a little sidetracked and $250 later we were loading up the car.

As always, our car was packed to the gills with me, Ryan, Michael, 2 dogs (we’re watching my parents maltese, Lucy), a pack n’ play, 3 luggage bags, 1 diaper bag, 2 bundles of firewood… and towing a trailer behind us with a large picnic table that my parents got for the backyard… it’s safe to say that we looked like the Clampetts. Michael slept the whole way there and we got there in no time!

Would you believe that I intentionally left my camera bag at home?! I even deliberately walked up to my office while packing… looked at my camera bag all packed and ready to go… and I left it at home. I wanted to purposefully unplug this past weekend! I knew I would have my phone to capture some fun memories while we were there… they may not be perfectly in focus or slightly under/over exposed… but I didn’t care. I’m trying to work harder to give myself as a new mama some grace over perfection. It’s really hard to do but I’m getting better at it.

We got in around 8PM Friday night — later than we wanted because we hate missing the sunsets at the river… so breathtaking! We enjoyed dinner and a movie then spent the rest of the evening talking about life, about everything. We agreed to have an unplugged weekend… no TV… no Facebook/Instagram scrolling… just being fully present and enjoying the atmosphere around us. Love me some quality time with my hubby and Michael! Saturday morning we enjoyed coffee in bed staring out the master bedroom windows to an incredible view of the Rappahannock. We went for a stroll along the sandy beach. It was such low tide we could walk under the docks as we walked with the dogs. Next we went exploring through the neighborhood and woods on the golf cart. It was freezing and windy outside but so very worth it… one of my favorite mornings by far! We then hopped in the car to explore the nearby towns. We stumbled across The Dog and Oyster Winery — so cute, delicious wine, loved the atmosphere, and the owner was super nice! We’ll definitely be back with friends once it’s warmer out!